This methane-hunting satellite is built to fight climate change
Meet MethaneSAT — an innovative new satellite that’s set to become a critical part of the fight against climate change.
How? It’s built to locate and measure pollution from methane, the greenhouse gas responsible for 30% of the warming we’re experiencing today. As companies and governments institute new rules and practices to cut methane, MethaneSAT will be tracking and measuring methane pollution, from sources large and small, all over the world.
By making its data public, MethaneSAT will ensure that polluters anywhere and everywhere can be held accountable. Swift reductions in methane pollution can reduce the rate of global warming, resulting in lower temperatures than expected in the next decade. When we slow down warming, we reduce the risk of dangerous climate disruptions, such as severe droughts and floods that are already devastating communities.
Scroll down to explore this remarkable new satellite, launching in 2024.
Where does it go?
MethaneSAT will circle the globe, pole-to-pole, about every 100 minutes, 366 miles above our heads. It will fly over regions that produce 80% of the world’s oil and gas, measuring methane at about 25 target locations each day. To track pollution, it will revisit sites every 3-4 days.
How big is it?
MethaneSAT is about the size of a washing machine — an 800-pound washing machine with a set of 13-foot wings.
What will it see?
With each pass, MethaneSAT scans a 124-mile wide swath of Earth, including places where other satellites aren’t looking for methane. It’s the only satellite that sees the whole picture of methane pollution, including millions of small sources around the world that are a huge part of the problem.
Who gets the data?
Anyone with an internet connection. MethaneSAT data will be free in order to hold polluters accountable.
MethaneSAT is the only satellite that can see the whole picture of methane pollution. By making this crucial information rapidly available, MethaneSAT will help companies, governments and advocates speed up emissions cuts, track progress and hold polluters truly accountable.
Hope for a warming planet
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